BOSTON — The Bruins' top line all season has put pressure on itself. It's the line that Claude Julien routinely sends out for offensive-zone faceoffs and the shift after a penalty kill, the one relied on to create chances and score goals.

In Game 1, the unit of Milan Lucic, David Krejci and Jarome Iginla got little accomplished in the Bruins' 1-0 loss, putting just a combined four shots on Red Wings goalie Jimmy Howard. Although Lucic scored a backbreaking goal in Sunday's 4-1 Game 2 victory when he finished a pretty give-and-go with Iginla, the trio was often once again mostly ineffective.

"You know we felt like we didn't leave enough out there in the first game, and sometimes in a series it takes a little bit to get things going," Lucic said. "As this has gone on I think it got a little bit better today, but I think moving forward we still have to get better to get to the top of our game."

Lucic and Iginla had two shots on goal each Sunday, and Krejci just one. It's allowed Red Wings coach Mike Babcock to keep No. 1 defenseman Niklas Kronwall occupied elsewhere. Danny DeKeyser and Kyle Quincey have taken on the Krejci line.

"I think they had the sense that they had to get going and they needed to produce and be a positive influence in this game," Julien said of his top line. "So they went right back at it and they scored a big goal for us. They've been a good line for us all year, and the biggest challenge for those guys is they're going to be checked on a little bit tighter in the playoffs and they've got to battle through those situations and continue to be a real productive line for us.

"And I thought tonight was better. Obviously the first game, they had a tough game, but I thought they bounced back well in this afternoon's game."

Lucic cut his foot with his own skate blade earlier on the shift he scored. He considered leaving the ice, but stayed on, then got stitches during intermission.

"A couple stitches, but a long way from the heart, right?," Lucic said.

Going viral

Defenseman Kevan Miller was back in the lineup after missing Game 1 with a virus that spread through the team.

Miller practiced Thursday for the first time leading up to Game 1, but "After practice was when things really went south, so that was unfortunate," he said.

Getting ready for his playoff debut, the 26-year-old was quarantined from the team most of the week. Miller played 25 shifts for 19:52 Sunday with four hits and a cross-checking penalty. …

Page 2 of 2 - Defenseman Matt Bartkowski was not as fortunate as Miller. Suffering from the same virus, Bartkowski was out for the second straight game.

While the Bruins' other four scratches watched the game from their usual perch near the coaches' box, Bartkowski was sent to the other side of the press box to watch with scout Ryan Nadeau.

Julien said Bartkowski — who practiced Saturday — and injured forwards Chris Kelly and Daniel Paille would travel with the team to Detroit after Monday's practice.

Toe to toe

At the end of the first period, Red Wings defenseman Brendan Smith challenged Bruins big man Zdeno Chara mano-a-mano. The 6-foot-9 Chara was smiling as he held Smith away with his arms before linesman Derek Nansen broke it up.

"[Chara] wouldn't be the first guy I'd choose in the NHL to go against," Reilly said. "He should probably think twice next time." …

Brendan Smith has already gotten chippy with a few Bruins in this series. Left wing Brad Marchand is often opposite the Detroit blue liner, and said he "got the inside scoop" that Brendan doesn't care for him.

"I kind of asked [Reilly], one day we were talking and I asked him [about] his brother growing up and what kind of a player he was," Marchand said. "I didn't know he was a physical D-man like he was, and I gave him a couple cheap shots, so I asked [Reilly] about that. He said, 'Yeah, he heard about it a bit.' So that's all."

Dan Cagen can be reached at 508-626-3848 or dcagen@wickedlocal.com. Follow him on Twitter @DanCagen.